


Cactuses

by EmmaArthur (EchoBleu)



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Aliens, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Disabled Character, Fluff and Humor, Handwavy worldbuilding, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, M/M, More than light angst apparently, Seriously no work went into the worldbuilding and it's stupid, Soul Bond, Tiny bit of Angst, Vaguely sci-fi, but a happy ending, cracky humor, this is very silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:54:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23401822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoBleu/pseuds/EmmaArthur
Summary: Physically, he was vaguely human shaped, enough that he wouldn’t easily be confused with a dolphin, and that was enough. His soul, however, very clearly looked like a cactus, with spikes going in every direction, forbidding anyone from approaching.Exactly like someone else she knew.
Relationships: Alex Manes & Isobel Evans, Isobel Evans/Maria DeLuca, Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Comments: 131
Kudos: 176





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely Mansikka's fault.

Isobel observed him from behind a large potted plant in the hospital lobby. She had spotted him from the corner of her eye in store parking lot next door, and she couldn't help but follow him all the way here. He was making it easy for her, walking slowly, leaning heavily on two crutches.

She hid behind various pieces of furniture, more or less successfully, until he disappeared behind a door marked _Physical Therapy_. He seemed to sense that he was followed, but he spotted her only once, and she immediately turned away and pretended to be doing something else, so she was fairly sure he didn't suspect her.

She needed to know who he was.

Not because he was hot. She had no idea if he was, truly. Humans were a mystery to her in that sense. Ever since she'd made it to Earth, she tried to figure out the strange ways of human courtship, but they eluded her completely.

No, p hysically, he was vaguely human shaped, enough that he wouldn’t easily be confused with a dolphin,  and that was enough . His soul, however, very clearly looked like a cactus, with spikes going in every direction, forbidding anyone  from approach ing .

Exactly like someone else she knew.

What to do? She couldn't exactly barge into his physical therapy to ask his name. Even she knew that was impolite. Instead, she settled in to wait for him to come back out. She sat down on a bench facing the right corridor and crossed her legs princely, like she'd seen human females do when they wanted to look unbothered by their surroundings.

She tapped her comlink until it beeped. “Michael!”

“What, Izzy?” her brother grumbled, sounding like he'd just woken up. He was in orbit, working on repairing their spaceship. They would have been gone days ago if their ship hadn't suddenly decided to blow a fuse in the middle of nowhere and this stupid planet had the replacement material they needed. They weren't even supposed to land on Earth at all, they were on their way back to Antar and it just happened to be the closest livable planet at the time.

It was just so  _backward._ The people here, for some reason, thought they were better than any other species, including the other semi-sentient beings on their own planets, and snubbed or downright hated aliens. The planet had almost self-destructed at first contact, when Antar had done them the civility of fixing their climate issue and they had responded by declaring war on any and all alien life.

It was better now, several decades in, but visible aliens still got the side-eye anywhere they went. Thankfully, Isobel knew how to disguise herself.

“I found him!” she said excitedly.

“Who?”

“Your soulmate!”

She could hear Michael roll his eyes from here. “Izzy, I told you, I don't care about my soulmate. I don't have a soulmate.”

“Everyone has a soulmate! And I've just found yours.”

Michael sighed. “Izzy, where are you? Do I need to tell Max to pick you up?”

“No!” Isobel said a little to loudly−several head turned toward her. Pity the telepathic connection had a distance constraint. “I'm fine. I'm gonna find out who he is.”

“He? Izzy, are you _stalking_ him?”

“Only a little! Until I know his name. You'll thank me later.”

“I most certainly will not,” Michael huffed. 

“Whatever,” Isobel ended the call.

She waited for what felt like a long time, staring at the corridor so she wouldn't miss him. Humans came to ask her twice if she needed something, but she just nudged them telepathically and they forgot about her.

Finally, the human-shaped cactus came out.  He was just as slow and careful as before, and Isobel narrowed her eyes to see his physical shape better. Ha. His right leg was missing and he had a prosthesis, not even a good one. They could get him a better one on Antar. The soul-scars, which took longer to scab over than the skin-scars, were still fresh, raw. He'd lost people. He'd had a hard life. Spikes, for every blow he took, every demeaning comment, every time someone who should have loved him abandoned him.  He had many.

“Hi,” Isobel said with a smile, coming up to him.

The human laid his eyes on her, and they widened in surprise. Of course. Her eyes never quite looked human. Isobel nudged him, and encountered resistance.

A human who could protect his own mind? She had to see that.

She knocked. He let her in. Well, not in, but in an anteroom of some kind. She couldn't go any further.

“It's not very polite to try to barge in,” she heard behind her. She turned to find his mental projection looming over her. “Who are you?”

“I'm Isobel,” Isobel answered in his language. “Antarian. And your…what do you call it, sister-in-law. Soon.”

“What?” he frowned.

“You're my brother's soulmate.”

He gave her a disbelieving look. “Humans don't have soulmates,” he said. “And I don't know your brother. Or do I?”

“Not yet,” Isobel said. “And humans can be other species' soulmates. It's rare, but it happens.”

“Okay,” the human said, though she could sense that he didn't believe her. “Why are you in my mind?”

“Because I need to make sure you're the right person for him,” Isobel answered.

“If I'm his soulmate, aren't we already connected? Does it matter if we're right for each other?”

“It matters to me,” Isobel shrugged. “Michael deserves someone good.”

“What will you do if I'm not?”

“My soulmate was bad. He...died.”

He raised an eyebrow. “And if I'm good?”

“Then you're coming with me back to our ship, and then to our planet,” Isobel answered.

“Oh, is that right?”

“Yes.”

“What if I have things to do here? I have a life, you know. I can't just slip off without notice, let alone move to another planet.”

Isobel huffed, frustrated. “My brother is your soulmate. What could be more important than that?”

“Um, learning to walk again?” he offered.

“We can arrange that”, Isobel said, without missing a beat. “You don't need to be on Earth for that.”

“My job, then? I'm in the Air Force, I can't just go AWOL.”

“I assume that means go missing? We can also arrange that. There is an interplanetary treaty on soul-bounds. And if you're a soldier, we can easily find you a job on Antar. A better one than you have here, most likely.”

“My friends?” 

“No family?” Isobel asked.

“None that would miss me,” he answered, a shadow coming over his face. So that was where some of the spikes were from, then.

“Then it will be easier,” Isobel said. “Your friends can come with, if you want them to. Or they can visit when you're settled. It's a bit of a journey, but it can be done. I'm told Antar is a good vacation spot. Beautiful views.”

The human laughed. “Not that I'm not enjoying this fantasy, but aren't we getting a little ahead of ourselves?”

“You're right,” Isobel nodded. “I don't even know your name.”

“Alex. And you should let me sit down, or I'm probably going to fall over.”

Isobel snapped out of his mind, and she found his aura wavering and darkening with pain. “I'm sorry, Alex,” she said sheepishly, working her mouth around his name. 

Alex shakily took the few steps that separated him from the bench Isobel was sitting on earlier and dropped onto it. “Shit,” he muttered through gritted teeth, taking a pill bottle out of his pocket  and swallowing two tablets .

“Are you okay?” 

“I will be. PT is a bitch.”

“Did you lose your leg in the war?” Isobel asked, mostly from curiosity. She had no idea what stupid internal war was going on between humans, and she didn't particularly care, but she cared about _this_ human. He was hers to care about now.

“Yes. Three months ago. Drove onto a bomb.”

Humans were barbarians, Isobel thought. There were so many much more efficient ways to kill people.  She's been particularly creative, with Noah, manipulating lightning with Max. He'd deserved it.

“You deserve better than this shitty planet,” she said without thinking.

Damn, how did she get from stalking him because he was Michael's soulmate to actually caring about him in so little time?

There was something about his soul. The dangerous cactus had a softness too. Between the spikes was soft, fluffy tissue, pulsing with light. Oh, he and Michael would be like velcro together.

Alex's aura turned purple suddenly. “I don't deserve anything,” he murmured.

Isobel frowned. “You really have nothing for you here, do you? Nothing that ties you to this place.”

Alex shook his head miserably.

“Then you definitely deserve better,” Isobel said. “Michael has been through a lot, too. You'll fit together.”

“But why me? Why would _I_ be his soulmate?”

Isobel shrugged. “Soulmates don't have a reason. They just are.  Do you like males?” 

“If you mean men, then yes.”

“I don't discriminate species,” Isobel huffed. “Do you think aliens are inferior?”

“No,” Alex said firmly. “Despite what you've been led to believed, all humans don't think that way. Only the ones in power.”

“Perfect. Then you're coming with me. I need to introduce you to my brother.”


	2. Velcro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Several people requested a follow up where Alex and Michael actually meet, so here it is.

“Michael, I'm docking in now,” Isobel said through her comlink. “You better be changed and waiting.”

Alex chucked from the seat behind her. The shuttle was tiny, meant for no more than three people at a time−her, Michael and Max. Max was still on Earth, stuck in a meeting with officials, so for once she was the one piloting. “You ever been in a spaceship?” she asked Alex.

“I am−was−in the Air Force. Piloting anything that can fly is part of our job description. I've never been outside the Solar system though.”

“We're not taking you today. The ship will stay right here in orbit, we're just here for you to meet Michael. You too can decide what you want to do together.”

“Are you really sure about this soulmate thing?” Alex asked. “What if we're not a match? What if you got it wrong?”

“Then you can go back to your life, if you want to. Nothing will prevent us from becoming friends, though. Would you like to have some Antarian friends, Alex?”

Alex shrugged. “Wait until you get to know me before you promise anything. I'm not an easy man to like.”

“I've been told I'm not an easy woman to like,” Isobel said. “How's that for a match? Now come on, we're here.”

Alex grabbed his crutches and followed her slowly out of the cramped shuttle and onto the ship proper. “This is the Airstream,” Isobel waved around them. “Michael's ship. He's our pilot, Max and I are just around for the ride.”

Alex laughed. “The Airstream?”

“What?”

“On Earth, it's the name for a kind of trailer,” Alex explained.

“What's a trailer?”

“Uh, a kind of very small house? On wheels? You attach it to a car and you can drive around with it.”

Isobel tried to imagined it, and shook her head. “Never heard of that,” she said. She opened the airlock door into the main part of the ship. “Come on.”

Michael was lounging in the pilot chair, wearing a fresh but crumpled shirt. Isobel rolled her eyes as she let Alex through. She caught Michael's slight surprise at the crutches, but it was drowned almost immediately as his and Alex's eyes met.

Isobel had never felt as transparent as she did in that moment.

“Hi,” Michael said, almost shyly, standing up and walking toward Alex.

“Hello,” Alex replied with a tilt of his head. He took a few more step, like there was a magnetic pull between them. “I'm Alex.”

“Michael.”

Isobel could _see_ their souls straining to get out of their body and toward each other. She'd been right. The match was perfect. The spikes were identical, but in reverse, and the space between had the same soft spongy tissue.

The souls finally escaped moments before Michael and Alex physically met, and crashed into each other. The spikes immediately rearranged to hook into the soft tissue, solidly anchoring themselves. Alex nearly fell as it pulled him into Michael's open arms.

“Hey there,” Michael muttered. “You alright?”

“I'm very well, thank you,” Alex replied with a dreamy look.

Michael pulled them both toward a couch, supporting Alex without letting go of him.

“Whoa,” Isobel blinked. “That was−”

“Incredible? Amazing? Perfect?” Michael offered.

“I was going to say 'fast',” Isobel answered.

“It feels right,” Alex shrugged. “I guess you didn't make a mistake after all.”

“Can I kiss you?” Michael asked him. “I want to kiss you.”

“He's not usually this sappy,” Isobel scrunched up her nose.

“I don't mind,” Alex told her. “I'm feeling a little sappy too. Yes, you can kiss me,” he added for Michael.

Isobel almost wanted to look away, feeling like she was witnessing something intimate. But it was stupid. They'd met less than five minutes ago. They didn't know the first thing about each other.

It hadn't been like that at all, for her and Noah. But then, look at how it ended. Yes, what she was feeling was a twinge of jealousy. All she had were her brothers, and now her brother had someone else.

“Come here,” Alex said, and Isobel realized she'd zoned out. “Don't feel left out. Michael may be my soulmate, but you promised to become my friend.”

Isobel almost teared up at that, and cursed herself. She was usually perfectly composed. Maybe the insufferable sappiness of it all was getting to her too.

“I'm fine,” she said, sitting down on the couch on Alex's other side. “You two get to know each other. I'll go call Max and tell him we won't pick him up until later tonight.”

“You're an angel,” Michael smiled at her. His hand had linked with Alex's, and wasn't letting go.

Isobel stood up again. “So, Alex, does that mean that you'll be coming with us back to Antar?”

“Uh, I have a few things to take care of first, but I supposed so?”

“I can come with you,” Michael offered immediately. Then looking at their linked souls, he added, “I'm not entirely sure that I can _not_ come with you, actually.”

“It's the soul thing?” Alex asked.

“Yes,” Isobel said. “Yours have gotten hooked and they don't seem in a hurry to let go.”

“Oh. I still don't see them.”

“Maybe we can teach you, once we're back on Antar,” Michael said. “I don't know if humans can learn.”

“I can sort of feel it, though,” Alex confessed. “Like I'll never want to be apart from you. Even just a little bit.”

“Yeah.”

“Does that mean that we can't move away from each other?”

“Maybe?” Michael winced. “We could...try. Just to see.” He didn't look like he wanted to, but he stood up and pulled Alex up with him. Experimentally, Alex took a firm step away.

There was a deafening noise, like velcro straps being pulled apart but horribly loud, and Alex and Michael bounced back into each other's arms.

“Oh,” Alex breathed.

“Guess we're stuck together,” Michael said.

For some reason, neither of them seemed to mind.


	3. Puppy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I lied, there will be five chapters. I had to give you some more adorkable soulmate Malex.

“So how did it go?” Isobel asked Alex as he and Michael walked inside.

“She thinks she can get me a fitted prosthesis in about a month,” Alex answered. “PT was...different.”

“Yeah, I bet,” Isobel laughed.

They'd landed on Antar four days ago, after nearly a week of travel back from Earth. One of the first thing Michael and Isobel had arranged, after clearing him with Antarian authorities and getting him a residing permit, was to resume his physical therapy. From the little she'd seen on Earth, she suspected Alex would find it very different−if for no reason other than that telekinetic massages were an interesting experience. He'd get a high tech prosthesis as well, one that would adapt to the shape of his stump and the level of exercise he wanted on its own.

“We actually wanted to ask your help,” Michael said, before Isobel could retreat into her room. They all lived together here, in a large house. 

“What do you need?” she asked.

“We've been training to move away from our souls, but so far only I have really made any progress,” Michael explained. “I think it's because I'm the only one who can see the souls. Do you think you could show Alex what they look like? Maybe then he can...sense them, or something.”

“It's worth a try,” Isobel shrugged. “Maybe you can learn to see them yourself, eventually. I don't know.”

“Do you have any idea what makes you able to see them?” Alex asked, going to sit down into the arm chair that was quickly becoming his. Michael followed, as if pulled by a thread, and perched on the arm rest. “Is it something in your eyes? Can you see more colors or something?”

“I'm not the scientist, he is,” Isobel pointed to Michael.

“Hey, this is not my area of expertise at all!” Michael defended himself.

“Liz would love to research this,” Alex muttered.

“Who's Liz?”

“A friend. She's a biological engineer.”

“Anyway, I think it may be more about our latent telepathy,” Isobel said. “I've always seen them clearer than most people, that's why I'm good at finding matches.”

“You're literally a matchmaker,” Alex raised an eyebrow in mirth.

“A match-finder,” Isobel corrected. “The souls do whatever they want.”

“So there really isn't a choice? We can't refuse a match? We can't choose our own partner?”

Isobel took a moment to find the right words. “It _is_ a choice,” she said. “It's just made by a part of you that you're not completely conscious of. But you can have other partners than your soulmate, and in some cases a bond can be woven, made stronger or even created.”

“I don't feel like I could ever have another partner,” Alex said doubtfully.

Isobel coughed. 

“What?”

“We bonded a little stronger than most people,” Michael said.

“Your bond is the strongest I've ever seen,” Isobel added. “If everyone who bonded were unable to even be in different rooms, we'd have some issues.”

Alex caught Michael's eyes and bit his lip, unsure. “So it's just us? What is it, like, true love?”

“Nah,” Michael shook his head. Alex's face fell a little. “I mean, it doesn't have to be,” Michael scrambled to add. “But it can. Mostly it means that we're really compatible. Which is good, cause we're not getting rid of each other any time soon.”

Alex was still frowning a little, but he let Michael kiss his hand.

“Okay,” he said. “So how do I see souls?”

“I'm going to try to guide your mind to it,” Isobel said, sitting down across from him. “Get comfortable.”

“Wait, wait, what is it going to feel like?”

“Don't worry, it doesn't hurt,” Michael said. “Isobel's gentle.”

“I'm not sure−” Alex swallowed.

“I'm not going to look at your memories or anything,” Isobel tried to reassure him. “I'll catch your surface thoughts, but that's all. I'm just going to point you in the right direction.”

“Okay.” Alex took a deep breath, trying to relax. He still looked apprehensive.

Isobel  checked in with Michael, who just nodded, and shifted her vision into the mindspace.

“Alex,” she said to attract his attention. His gaze snapped to her. “Are you okay?”

“I think so,” Alex answered honestly. He couldn't lie, here. “Let's do this.”

“Alright. Look here,” Isobel pointed at Michael. The current mindscape was a simple overlay of their living room, and everything looked the same, if a little distorted. Isobel focused, and Alex and Michael's linked souls started to glow brighter. “Can you see it?”

“Yes,” Alex murmured, fascinated. He reached out to poke at the souls. They weren't physical in the usual sense of the world, but in here, neither was he. He grabbed a spike between his fingers and gently tugged at it, but it remained in place.

“Do you see what I mean now when I say you're compatible?” Isobel asked, amused.

“Uh-uh.”

“Can you tell which one is yours?”

Alex contemplated the souls. “Um, this one, I think?” he pointed.

“Yes. What makes you say that?”

“I don't know. It's more...it's responding to me, I guess? Like it's vibrating.”

“Okay, hold on to that feeling,” Isobel said. “Now, can you try to get a little further away from it?”

Alex stood carefully, surprised to realize that he didn't need his crutches. “Your body is a projection,” Isobel explained. “Of your brain's map. It hasn't integrated the amputation yet.”

“I still feel my leg almost like it's whole, at times,” Alex said.

He took a step backward, away from Michael, and his soul started vibrating even more, itching to follow him. “No, stay,” Alex murmured.

Isobel laughed. “It's not a dog.”

“It behaves like a puppy,” Alex shrugged. “I've always wanted a dog.”

He took another step back. “Feels weird,” he said.

“Your body is still sitting down.”

Alex blinked, and he was back in the armchair. “Oh.”

“I'm going to try to get you out of the mindspace slowly. Try to keep your eyes on the souls. Your mind's eyes, not your real ones.”

“Uh, what's the difference?”

Isobel snorted. “Right. Maybe you don't even have those. Just do your best okay?”

Alex nodded. Isobel pulled out as slowly as she could, but there was still a small snap as they came out.

Alex was still staring at the souls, peering like he couldn't see them well. “I see something,” he said. “It's unclear. I don't see the shapes anymore.”

“It's a good start,” Isobel said.

“You did it?” Michael asked.

“With some training, you can probably see souls like we do. Though maybe only yours and Michael's,” Isobel told Alex.

“Thank you. Now we just have to figure out how to get away from them, since they won't separate.”

“You'll manage,” Isobel shrugged. “It kind of behaves like a puppy, like you said. You just need to train it.”

“We'll see.”

“We'll figure it out, baby,” Michael murmured to Alex. Alex looked up at him adoringly, his self-doubt melting away. The soulmate effect could be quite something, Isobel reflected.

“You two are adorable,” she snickered.

Michael stuck his tongue out at her, before going right back to staring into Alex's eyes. Isobel rolled her own eyes and stood up. “Okay, I'll leave you lovebirds to it.”

“I do have one more question,” Alex said quietly. He'd turned back to her, eyes piercing.

“What is it?”

“Why did _no one_ tell me my soul is shaped like a fucking _cactus_?”


	4. Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [brief mention of war, alcohol]

“Alex!”

Isobel watched the young woman, her soul flowery and red and a soft yellow at the center, run from behind her bar and jump into Alex's open arms.

“Maria!” he laughed, bracing himself against a table to hug her. “It's so good to see you.”

“How are you doing? How long are you back? Introduce me to your friends,” Maria fired rapidly, not leaving him any time to answer. Alex just waited until she was done and started introducing them and talking about his life on Antar.

It had been six months, since Isobel had taken Alex to their ship to meet Michael. Alex had settled almost smoothly on their native planet, finding a job in military security that he could mostly do from home. He and Michael still couldn't be more than a few yards apart, but they'd adapted, and neither of them seemed overly bothered by that fact. They still behaved like newlyweds. They'd moved in together without hesitation, just days after meeting each other−but such was the power of soul bonds.

Alex had regular contact with his friends back home, and as soon as they could all take some vacation time, he'd asked to go back. He didn't miss Earth, not exactly, but so many things were different on Antar, and he sometimes confided in Isobel that he felt homesick. He never told Michael that, though. Michael abandonment issues tended to shine through whenever he was reminded that his soulmate wasn't even from the same planet, and he'd close in on himself, or go on a bender.

The fear that Alex would one day leave him couldn't even be assuaged by the fact that they physically couldn't handle being apart. So here Michael was, standing beside Alex as he introduced him to his human friends−Alex's other best friend Liz had shown up in the meantime−looking like he wanted to be anywhere else.

“Michael, can you at least pretend to be happy for him?” Isobel murmured in her brother's ear. She didn't like Earth anymore than she had last time they were here, but it had brought them Alex. A light in their life, truly. The end of years of misery and longing for Michael, and a great verbal sparring partner for Isobel. Even Max had found a friend in Alex.

“Sorry,” Michael deflated. “I'll try.” This was important to Alex. After taking him away from his planet for six months with barely any warning, they owed it to him to give him this. After this week, he probably wouldn't see his friends again for another six months or more.

They all settled around a table, as Maria brought them beers. Max and Liz took one look at each other, and their souls did a _smooch_ and melted with each other. Well, that was another thing taken care of−or maybe another issue to deal with? Isobel watched them with a good dose of envy. She wouldn't find another soulmate. Not after what Noah did to her, using her body and her mind. It wasn't unheard of, having several soulmates, but finding one was rare enough, and even then, Isobel didn't think she was capable of loving with her soul anymore. Now with how damaged it was.

The people of Earth, if nothing else, were refreshing in the way they didn't avert their eyes when they saw her. They couldn't see souls, according to Alex. Everyone on Antar knew what had happened to Isobel  at  a single glance−killing your own soulmate left a recognizable mark.

Although the strange, sympathetic look on Maria's face when she met Isobel's eyes told her that maybe not all humans were the same.

Isobel didn't pay attention to the people going in and out of the bar until Alex looked up at a man who walked in with a surprised expression on his face.

“Kyle?”

“Alex? Wow. It's been a long time.”

Alex huffed. “Yeah, you could say that.”

“Ten years, uh?”

“Guys, this is Kyle Valenti,” Alex introduced. “Kyle, this is Michael, Isobel and Max. You already know Liz and Maria.”

“He was in high school with us,” Maria explained.

“Are you guys−” Kyle hesitated.

“We're Antarian,” Isobel said. Their clothes, more than their appearance, distinguished them.

“I meant−” Kyle tried again. “Are you−” he gestured between Alex and Michael, who had an arm around Alex's waist.

“Yes, we're together,” Alex confirmed. “That gonna be a problem?”

“No, of course not! I'm not like that anymore,” Kyle raised his arms in defense. “Really, I'm sorry for all I said back in high school. I was stupid.”

“Um. Okay,” Alex said a little doubtfully, but he seemed to choose to let it slide. “Michael's actually my soulmate. The alien way.”

“So you got yourself an _actual_ soulmate? I knew you were hopelessly romantic, but not that much, Manes!”

The three Antarians in the room froze.

“Manes?” Michael almost squeaked. On Antar, people didn't have last names. To them, Alex was just Alex. They'd never even thought to ask for his full name. “Manes? That's your last name? Like the Manes who try to destroy us?”

Alex looked horrified, and so did the other humans around the table, sensing disaster. He shook his head in desperation. “No, no, no,” he murmured. Isobel was stuck between feeling sorry for him and horrifically confused.

“Alex,” Michael's voice had gone cold. “Answer the question.”

“Yes,” Alex said through gritted teeth, meeting his fate with his head held high, once the moment of shock past. “Jesse Manes is my father.”

“You're the _son_ of the general who campaigns to kill us all?” Max asked, as Michael was too gobsmacked to continue the interrogation. Isobel just didn't know what to do. There was no way someone with a soul like Alex's could be that evil, and he clearly had shown none of it. But then maybe humans could hide their true nature, she couldn't know for certain. Was he some kind of spy?

“He is the man who gave birth to me,” Alex explained. “Doesn't mean I agree with him. He hates me, and everything I represent. Having an alien soulmate is just one of these things.” He turned to Michael. “You _know_ I don't think like him.”

Michael shook his head. “How could you hide this from me?”

Alex sighed. “I wasn't exactly going to introduce you,” he answered slowly. “You're my family, not him.”

“You still chose not to tell me.”

“Yes. And I'm sorry. I have nothing to say except that...I was afraid of what you'd think of me.”

“And what am I supposed to think, now that I know you _lied_ to me?” Michael spat.

“I didn't−” Alex started. _I didn't lie_ , Isobel fills in the blanks. He just never spoke about his family at all. “I'm sorry.”

He ma d e a gesture toward Michael, but Michael stood up brutally. “I need some space,”  he said.

“Okay,” Alex murmured miserably. “When you're ready−”

“We'll see.”

Alex nodded,  biting his lip. He watched Michael walk away to the bar and order a stiff drink from Maria, who'd just gone back to work.

“You guys−” he started toward Isobel and Max. Isobel looked at Max, letting him decide. She had her own opinion, but she would follow her brother's lead on this. She'd been the one who found Alex, after all. If it went pear-shaped, it would be her fault.

Max was still wrapped up in his sudden love, but he looked at Alex critically. “I believe that you're not like your father. I don't like that you didn't tell us, but you're entitled to a private life, at least with us. If you make things right with Michael, I don't have an issue with you. If you hurt my brother again, on the other hand−”

“Thank you,” Alex murmured.

Isobel caught his eyes and nodded. “He'll come around,” she said. Michael was hot-headed, but he wasn't a fool, and his love for Alex was deep. They were soulmates. That couldn't just go away.

Isobel looked between Michael, sitting at the bar, and Alex, with an apologetic Kyle Valenti at the table near the back wall. She didn't have the precognition gift some of her people developed, but she could almost _feel_ another disaster coming. She expected a fight, maybe, from the dark looks Michael was sending Valenti and the amount of alcohol he was ingesting. Of course the bars in Roswell, the point of first contact, would have acetone on tap. 

She absolutely did not expect Michael's tongue down Maria DeLuca's throat.  Maria only leaned into the kiss for a second, but the harm was done.

Alex saw it at the same time she did, and she didn't get a chance to do something. He stood up, looking gobsmacked for a moment, then absolutely devastated.  Hesitantly, he took a few steps toward Michael, then just shy of touching him, his face turned resolute. He mentally grabbed at their linked souls and  _pulled._

There was a horrible screeching sound that made Isobel want to clasp her hands over her ears. And then, as quickly as it had started, it was all over, the bar suddenly quiet. Michael crumpled on his bar stool. And Alex…

Alex was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *hides*


	5. Soulbond

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, uh, I left you with a terrible cliffhanger last time. And this chapter was meant to be the last, but it grew and grew and grew… The next part will be up tomorrow.

Tracking Alex down took more effort than Isobel expected. He'd thrown his comlink on a table before leaving, and she'd lost sight of his mind soon after he'd walked out of the bar. She'd stayed frozen for too long, and by the time she followed him out the door, after taking care of her devastated brother as well as she could, he was long gone.

She went back inside and grilled his suspicious friends on where he might have gone. Max asked where he'd grown up, but all three of them just groaned and shook their head.

“He wouldn't go there,” Michael muttered from where he was curled up on a bench seat, like all life had seeped out of his body. He was hugging himself around his gaping, whimpering soul. “He hates his family. He told me that, if nothing else.”

Alex had never really talked to Isobel about his family, and he tended to close in on himself when the subject came up. She let it go. “Anywhere else you can think of?”

Maria shook her head. “He hasn't lived in Roswell in over ten years, and as far as I know we're the only ones he's stayed in contact with. Maybe the base?”

“Why would he go there? He's not in the Air Force anymore.”

Maria shrugged. “He might still have friends there.”

“There might be a place,” Kyle said. “But...I don't know if I should tell you. If Alex doesn't want to talk with you…”

Isobel sighed and looked him in the eyes. She could easily extract the knowledge from his mind, but she hesitated. The man was Alex's friend−or something like that anyway−and he was a doctor. He could be convinced. “Look at him,” she pointed at Michael. “Soulmate bonds are strong, and theirs is one of the strongest I've seen. Alex has got to be feeling about the same right now. He could collapse somewhere and be unable to get back up.”

Kyle bit his lip. “Maybe I could go there and talk to him.”

“Take me,” Isobel said forcefully. “Alex is my friend, not just my brother's boyfriend. You haven't even talked to him in ten years.”

“He stays here,” Kyle indicated Michael.

“He's not in any state to do otherwise,” Isobel decided before Michael could process this and protest. “Max, you stay with him?”

Max nodded. Liz couldn't get far from him, so she was stuck there too. Maria exchanged a glance with Isobel, but she had a bar to manage. And she might well not be welcome around Alex right now. Isobel leaned down to hug Michael, who moaned into her ear. “Ssh, I'm going to bring him back,” she murmured.

“I'm sorry,” Michael whimpered.

“You tell _him_ that.” Isobel stood up and turned toward Maria. “I'm pretty sure you weren't a willing participant in this drama, but don't touch him, okay? His soul could try to latch onto anything right now, and if it does, we'll have an even more serious problem.”

“Understood,” Maria nodded. “Take care of my friend.”

“Take care of my brother,” Isobel replied in the same tone.

*

The cabin Kyle took her to was way out of town and in a state of disrepair. “My father left it to Alex,” Kyle explained. "Our lawyer said she gave him the keys before he left with you guys.”

Isobel decided not to question why Kyle's father would leave a cabin in the middle of nowhere to his son's former friend. “How did he drive there?” she asked instead. “He didn't take our rental, it was still at the bar.”

“If he's here, I assume he took an Uber,” Kyle answered.

“Uber?”

“Right, I forget you're not from around here. There's an app, you can ask people to drive you wherever you want.”

They got out of the car. The front door of the cabin was locked and no one answered their calls, so Isobel unlocked it with her powers. “Alex?” she called.

There was a thin layer of dust over every piece of furniture, untouched for six months. It was disturbed in several places, confirming that someone was there. Isobel extended her mental reach and hit a wall that shouldn't have been there.

“Alex!” She rushed forward, blindly finding the bedroom. Alex was curled up on the bed, shoes off and his pants halfway undone like he hadn't had the strength to finish undressing. 

H e was crying. Not sobs, not whimpers, just tears running down his temples and a scream on his mouth. The pain of someone who had long learned to cry silently. Isobel fell to her knee by the bed, but Alex stopped her before she could hug him.

“Don't touch me,” he warned, his voice shaky but firm.

“Why?”

“Just go, Isobel. I don't want you here.”

Isobel sighed. “Alex, what are you doing? You're in pain.”

Alex laughed humorlessly. “Yeah. Who knew splitting souls was so painful? Voldemort made it look so easy.”

“I have no idea what you're talking about. But Michael didn't mean it, Alex. You know he can be impulsive. He's like a little child sometimes.”

“That wasn't a child's kiss,” Alex pointed out. He full-body shuddered and curled up on himself further, even though it had to be hell on his leg. Isobel instinctively wanted to help him remove his prosthesis, but he flinched away when she tried.

“That was stupid of him. But it doesn't mean he's stopped loving you.”

“That's the problem,” Alex sighed. “He should. He will.”

“What do you mean?” Isobel frowned.

“Deep down, I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop since the first day,” Alex murmured. “But I let myself be fooled. I let myself believe I'd found someone who could love all of me.”

“He does, Alex. Michael loves you.”

Alex shook his head. “How can he? He thought he'd found someone who was worthy of him, but I'm not. I can never be. My family has been trying to kill your entire species for generations.”

“Oh, Alex. What your family did had nothing to do with you.”

“I'd be a fool to believe that. My father raised me to be like him. I've fought in meaningless wars whose purpose wasn't any better. All he ever did was groom me for this.”

“You're not your father,” Isobel insisted.

“Maybe not. But it doesn't change anything, in the long run. Michael is going to hate me for what I represent eventually. He'll start resenting me, and we'll just keep hurting each other.”

I sobel sat back on her heels, shocked and lost. Alex's soul was gaping, almost bleeding, uselessly reaching out. She didn't dare touch it, the angry spikes threatened her every time she even looked at it. And yet she felt a yearning, from her own charred soul, to go heal this injured friend.

S he heard a noise behind her and found Kyle standing at the door, his face sad. He gestured, as if asking how he could help, but Isobel shook her head. Alex was so convinced of what he was saying, she couldn't see a way to change his mind. She couldn't see a way out of this.

“You once told me it was a choice,” Alex said through gritted teeth. “If it is, then why do I feel this way? Why can't I _choose_ to stay away?”

“That's not how it works,” Isobel said sadly.” I think you already know that. You haven't stopped loving him, and your soul knows that.”

“I'm only going to hurt him.”

“You _are_ hurting him, right now,” Isobel pointed out. “He's as much a mess as you are.”

Alex winced at that and hugged himself tighter.  “ Then help me,” h e murmured.

“Anything for you, Alex. I'll get you back to him. I'll carry you if I have to.”

“No,” Alex sighed. “Help me break the bond. I know you've done it before.”

Isobel's shoulders shook in shock and horror. “No! That was different!”

“Yes, it was,” Alex acknowledges. “But it proves that the bonds can be broken. I need to do this, Isobel. For Michael. He deserves to be free.”


	6. Soulmates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t even know what this is. There will be some kind of epilogue after this, I think.

“Alright, I'll help you break the bond,” Isobel said. She'd been arguing with Alex for half-an-hour, and he was wincing and moaning more and more often, incapable of keeping the agony inside. She had to shake things up, even if it wasn't in the right decision. If Michael was feeling the same way, they wouldn't make it for much longer.

“Really?” Alex blinked weakly.

“Yes. If you think that's what will make Michael happy, then I'll help.”

Alex took a shaky breath and closed his eyes. “Thank you.”

“Your souls need to be together to sever the connection,” Isobel said.

“Then take me to him.”

Alex stood up with difficulty, leaning on her.  Kyle rushed to his other side and ducked under his arm.  Isobel tried to hide the way her hands were shaking.

She really, really hoped her plan would work,  that Alex would see that Michael truly loved him when he saw the state he was in. She didn't have a better idea.

They slowly walked to the car, and Isobel climbed in the back with Alex, helping him lie down across the seats with his head on her lap. He was exhausted, on the verge of passing out, and yet his soul still reached out desperately. She wanted to comfort him with her own soul, but settled for stroking his face instead, drying the tears running down his face. “It's going to be okay,” she murmured over and over as Kyle drove them back to town.

The bar was closing when they arrived in the parking lot, but Maria held the door for Kyle, who supported Alex inside. She locked eyes with Isobel, shock on her face at his state.

“How's Michael?” Isobel murmured.

Maria shook her head. “Same. He hasn't moved since you left, but he won't sleep. He just stares at the door and moans.”

Isobel closed her eyes briefly. “They're both stubborn fools. I couldn't convince Alex that Michael really loves him.”

“Then how did you get him to come back?”

Isobel averted her eyes, and walked inside. “By any means necessary. This isn't going to be pretty.”

She was just in time to see Alex try to resist going any closer to Michael, and Michael stumble−crawl, really−up to him. Alex flinched hard and stepped back before they could touch, collapsing backwards when his leg refused to hold him up.  They stayed like this for a moment, both on the floor, frozen in shock, while Kyle hovered above them, lost.

“Alex,” Michael whispered desperately. “Please.”

The scene was both heart-wrenching and weirdly intimate, like they were all intruding on a  visceral, brutally private moment. Yet none of them, Kyle, Isobel, Maria, Liz or Max, could turn their eyes away. There was a magnetism in it, in the way their souls cried and reached out to each other, that settled deep into the pit of Isobel's stomach, almost bringing her to her knees.

Her memories of the night she killed Noah were confused, broken by trauma, but they had the same quality.

A lex scooted backward, not letting Michael reach him. “I'm sorry,” Michael cried. “I'm so sorry. I don't know why I did that.”

“You were angry,” Alex answered in a whisper. “You were right to be. I wasn't upfront with you.”

“Does that mean you forgive me?” Michael frowned. The hope on his face was painful to watch, especially as Isobel had an idea of what was coming. 

Alex steeled himself with a deep, pained breath. “There's nothing to forgive.  But−”

Michael reached out to him again, and Alex flinched back. “But what?”

“It made me realize that I've been fooling myself. This...soulmate thing, it doesn't mean that we're good for each other.” Alex looked up and briefly met Isobel's eyes, his gaze full of regret. “We don't even know each other all that well.”

“No!” Michael almost shouted. “We are! We're...I want to be good for you, Alex! I love you!”

“I love you too,” Alex sighed. “I just don't think it's enough. My father, my family, my baggage...the only thing I can do is hurt you.”

“It's not true−”

“I want to break the bond, Michael,” Alex cut him firmly. He had tears running down his face, but he was finally steady, his hands digging into the spikes of his soul. 

Michael sat agape for a moment. “What? No! Alex, we can talk about this−” 

Alex swallowed. “It's what I want,” he asserted.  “Isobel will help.”

Michael shot Isobel a betrayed look, and she replied with a grimace. “What about what I want?” he asked.

“Would you force me to stay?” Alex asks, tilting his head. If she didn't know any better, Isobel would think he was half hoping that Michael would say yes.

“No, of course no, but Alex−”

“Then it's time to let me go.”

Alex refused to look at Michael and instead turned to Isobel expectantly. They were still on the floor, and Isobel lowered herself to their level slowly, scrambling for an idea.

“Alex−” she started.

Alex raised a hand−Isobel almost expected it to be bloody from where it had dug into a spike, but souls couldn't cause physical injuries. She could see his shriveling, though, like a cactus desperate for water. “Don't. You said you'd help.”

“I will,” Isobel said. “But there's something I want to say first.”

Alex bit his lip and nodded cautiously.

“When we took you from here, brought you to Antar, we never actually asked if that was what you wanted. I'm sorry I never realized.”

“What I wanted never mattered before,” Alex shrugged. 

“But it does. It should have then, and it does now. The thing is, I don't think this is what you want. I think this is what you believe you have to do.”

Alex looked away. “What's the difference?” he asked.

Isobel forced herself not to scream. If she ever crossed paths with Alex's father, he'd be thankful to end up like Noah. “When I broke my bond, I did it because it was what I needed,” she said. “And it left my soul scarred, because I was still to untangled in Noah's lies to truly want him gone. If you do this and it's not truly what you want, deep down, it's going to kill you, Alex.”

_ Will Michael live? Will he be okay? _ The questions enter Isobel's mind directly. Alex has gotten better at this, projecting his thoughts.

“I don't know,” she answered with her voice. Michael looked between them in confusion. “Maybe. Not okay, though, not really. Not without you.”

_ He'll be better off without me. _

Isobel sighed.  _ Look at him _ , she projected.  _ He's never been happy. Not until you came along. _

And there she could see the hitch in his thought. The idea that Alex's simple presence could be the one who had made him happy was simply impossible to process for him. Not when he'd been raised to think that his only worth lay in what he could do for other people. In what he could sacrifice of himself.

_ Alex, _ Isobel pushed.  _ Does he make  _ you _ happy? _

Alex closed his eyes. _Yes,_ he admitted.

Isobel placed her hand on his, carefully, and he didn't immediately draw back. “Let me try something?” she asked aloud.

He nodded minutely. Isobel extended her other hand to Michael, who took it immediately. He looked lost and terrified, but trusting.

“In Antarian tradition, when people exchanged their marriage vows, they mark each other,” Isobel started. She had a captive audience of Alex's friends, in the empty bar. “The mark allows them to share what they feel for each other. It's far more than a soul bond, because a soul bond isn't a conscious decision. You can't mark each other without having your souls connected, and we need to respect Alex's wishes to stay apart. But I can mimic some of the effects of the mark with my powers.”

“Isobel−” Alex moved, grabbing her hand to stop her. “I don't−”

“Breaking the bond isn't a decision you can make lightly,” Isobel murmured to him. “You're so ready to sacrifice yourself when you can't see what it will do to the people who love you. You think Michael would be happier without you, but you don't have the monopoly on love, Alex, or on sacrifice. I want you to see what it would do to him.”

Alex stayed frozen, so Isobel decided to take that as assent. She squeezed his hand and pulled on the threads between his and Michael's mind, opening a connection. Both of them gasped.

Respectfully, she pulled back and stayed out of it, monitoring the link instead. It leaked pain, and grief, and fear, and for a moment−seconds, hours, she didn't know anymore−she thought they were going to break the bond. A whole argument was going on in there, bouncing feelings and emotions around instead of words. Isobel had to fight to keep it steady.

The outpouring of  _ hurt family love _ ejected her right out. She physically went backward and hit her head on a chair leg, and for a moment all she could see was stars. Maria helped her sit back up, supporting her gently.

When Isobel looked back at them, Alex and Michael were tangled in each other, and their souls were v elcroed together again.


	7. Flowers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last part of this series. This part is longer than all of the others, but it feels like an epilogue. I never meant to take this little series this far or to make it angsty at all, but I guess that’s just how my mind works!
> 
> There is some Maribel in this (in the second scene). I wrote that scene before 2x06 came out, which is a good thing because I don’t think I can write Maria anymore, at least not like this. I honestly had some doubts that I could write anything for this show again, but I love Alex too much, and I don't want to abandon my AUs.
> 
> [brief mentions of PTSD, mental health issues, medication, alcoholism, war]

Isobel knocked lightly on the open door of the bedroom, where Michael and Alex lay tangled on the bed. Michael immediately looked up and nodded at Alex, who was sound asleep. He untangled himself from Alex silently and gave their intertwined souls a pat, so that t hey remained by Alex's side, as Michael joined Isobel at the door.

“He hasn't slept this much in a while,” he murmured, closing the door behind him. “I don't want to wake him up.”

Isobel nodded. It had been a couple of days since Alex had freaked out and tried to break the soul bound.  They'd gone back to Alex's cabin, once Alex had renounced his project and the most urgent issues had been clear, and he and Michael had spent most of their time sleeping or resting since, exhausted.

“I think we need to stay on Earth for a while,” Isobel said. “Alex needs some time before we make him go back to a foreign planet.”

“But he grew up here,” Michael frowned. “Maybe it's what's triggering him in the first place.”

Isobel bit her lip. “It's possible, but here is also where he has friends, and people like him.  He needs help. More than we can give him.”

“Yeah,” Michael sighed. “But he seemed okay on Antar? And our mind-healers−”

“They're good, but they won't understand human psychology. Alex hasn't talked to us much about his past, but you of all people know what the spikes on his soul mean.”

“I know,” Michael chuckled. “I agree. We need to stay here for now. I'll give him as much time as he needs. You don't have to stay, though.”

“I think Max is going to stay,” Isobel said. “Liz doesn't seem ready to leave this place. She's got her father and her sister.”

“What about you?”

“I don't know yet. I think I might explore this planet a little. For the time being, I'll stay around here. Maybe find a place in town that's a bit larger than here.”

“Does it have anything to do with Maria?” Michael asked with a smirk. Isobel raised an eyebrow. “I may have been wrapped up in Alex, but I know my sister.”

“I don't know what you mean,” Isobel coughed.

“Don't worry, I'm just happy for you. She seems like a good person.”

I sobel nodded begrudgingly. “I'm going to start making arrangements. We'll need proper visas if we're going to stay.”

Michael yawned. “I think I'll try to have another nap,” he said.

“This really wore you out,” Isobel observed.

“Yeah. It was...more painful than I could ever imagine. I−” Michael bit his lip, catching her eyes. “I never understood, what it must have been like for you.”

“Our bond was never this strong, so it wasn't...I'm not sure either of you would have survived, if Alex had gone through with it. You, maybe. Alex would have absorbed all the energy and he wouldn't have made it.”

Michael swallowed. “Fuck.  I...I still can't believe he wanted to do that.”

“He didn't want to, Michael. He sincerely thought you'd be happier if he wasn't there.”

“Yeah. It's so fucked up. I love him so much, but he can't even see it because he thinks so little of himself.”

Isobel nodded. “Just talk to him about getting help, okay?”

“I will,” Michael said. “I'll do everything in my power to support him.”

*

“Isobel!” Maria exclaimed, looking up from where she was cleaning the counter. “What are you doing here?”

“I know you finish early tonight,” Isobel said. “Michael and Alex are celebrating their first year anniversary by going out to dinner, but I want them to have the house tonight. I thought maybe we could−” she hesitated, uncharacteristically shy.

“Play?” Maria offered with a smile. Isobel still didn't understand how Maria could make her lose all her haughtiness and reduce her to a puddle of softness. She made her melt. “Of course. Give me a minute to finish here, and we can go over to my place.”

T he last six months, since they'd come to Earth, had been trying. More than Isobel imagined it would be. Acclimating to Earth's culture and climate, to say nothing of the humans' general distrust of anything alien, had been hard for the three siblings, but more than that, they'd all had relationships to fight for.

Alex and Michael were finally doing better, but it had taken a while. Alex's embarrassment over his major freak out had led to him meekly agreeing to anything Michael proposed for weeks, and his therapy session brought out the ugliness of his PTSD−Isobel had had time to learn all kind of things about human psychology, and she was almost bored enough to start writing a book about how it might be useful to Antarian mind healers. Alex had had constant nightmares and daily panic attacks for several months, despite heavy medication. Out of desperation, Michael and Isobel had seriously thought about putting him on a ship back to Antar and getting a mind healer to erase his traumatic memories altogether, but Alex had put a stop to that before they could put the plan in motion.

And then just as A lex was starting to get better, Michael had crashed.  The weight of his worry for Alex and his difficulties adapting to Earth had been too much for him. His mental health had always been a fragile equilibrium, for as long as Isobel could remember. Their parents' death in the war when they were seven had led Michael to a string of bad foster placements, while Max and Isobel had been adopted fairly quickly, and Michael had never completely recovered from the abuse he'd endured. His soul didn't match Alex's by mistake. Far from Antar and the mind healers he'd seen there,  he'd held things together by the skin of his pants for as long as Alex needed him to be strong, and then he'd fallen off the wagon and gone onto a three-night-bender. 

Isobel sighed, trying to focus back on the present. Alex and Michael had found a balance of sort after Michael had admitted he wasn't doing well, holding each other up and talking a lot about their issues. They deserved their night out. They deserved some rest and good times. She just hoped the world would be kind enough to give it to them.

Max and Liz has found out that a soul bond, even a strong one, wasn't enough to make a working couple, and it had gone in fits and starts. Thankfully, their souls didn't spend their whole time stuck together and they would separate with a bit of coaxing. After some spectacular arguments and truly disgusting public make-out sessions, they'd figured out that a traditional relationship would simply never suit them. Isobel got to hear far too many details about their arrangements. She regretted ever asking.

Isobel herself was rather tired of being a shoulder to cry on, however much she loved her brothers and her brother in law.  Earth was boring as hell, and she was more than ready to go home. Except for one tiny detail.

That detail was named Maria DeLuca. The woman snapped her fingers in front of Isobel's face to bring her out of her thoughts and dragged her inside her apartment. “ Isobel, are you alright?”

“Yes, sorry,” Isobel shook her head. “Just thinking.”

“You want something to drink?”

“Do you still have that lemonade drink? I'm not in the mood for alcohol.”

“Sure,” Maria smiled sweetly. She brought two glasses and a pitcher back, and they sat down on the cushioned floor in her little meditation room.

Isobel focused for a moment, floating her soul between them. She marveled, not for the first time, at how good it looked. The charred part was only a spot now, rather than a gaping hole. The rest was growing and flourishing like a budding flower. It was completely different from what it had been, even before Noah−and it was beautiful.

Maria's own beautiful soul approached hers. Isobel felt the sudden warmth as their souls touched lightly, brushing and exploring each other. Then Maria added her hands into the mix, stroking Isobel's soul like she would a cat, and she smiled. Isobel smiled back.

T heir relationship had been anything but easy. Isobel was not an easy woman to approach, for one. Despite the thread of understanding she and Maria had shared the night they first met, through all of that drama, they were as different as two women could be. They butted head over the silliest things all the time−and okay, maybe it was part of the charm.

But then, Maria had had to make the decision to bring her mother to an assisted living facility, and Isobel had been the one who was there. Alex and Liz had tried, but they were both also going through difficult times, and their support wasn't the help Maria needed. So Isobel had gone with her to visit the facility,  had helped her fill out the paperwork and had hugged her when it got too hard.

That day, Maria had touched her soul for the first time.

Isobel had freaked out completely. She'd run out, and found herself a sobbing and whimpering mess in Alex's arms. She didn't know exactly why she'd run to him, but he'd been the one who understood. He'd soothed her and then slowly, step by step, brought her back to Maria. Maria who could see Isobel's soul and wasn't horrified.

Maria who could touch Isobel's soul and still want to talk to her.

Their souls didn't  _smooch_ or velcro together. Not yet. They caressed each other like children who would stroke their cheeks together. They shaped themselves around each other. They bloomed together. Maria had carefully, patiently, watered Isobel's soul until it was almost healed,  and her  own broad,  flowery soul now had a space, between petals, where Isobel's could nestle. 

Focused on the soul, Isobel felt the kiss on her lips before she saw Maria lean over.

*

“Isobel,” Alex greeted her. He turned and opened his arms to hug her.

Isobel returned the hug with a sigh of pleasure. Such spontaneous gestures from Alex were new and rare and she treasured each of them.

“Something changed,” he noticed as he let her go. “You're...happy.”

Isobel caught her soul in her hand and held it up to him for inspection, giddy with excitement. “Look.”

Alex tilted his head. “It's healed. Wow, that's amazing, Isobel! You're amazing. I'm happy for you.”

“Thank you,” Isobel smiled. It was funny, how in the course of the last year, Alex's opinion had started to mean more to her than even her brothers'. They'd truly become best friends in every way.

“Thank _you_ ,” Alex said, dragging her in to sit down on the couch with him. “I've never really thanked you for approaching me that day at the hospital.”

Isobel tucks her leg under her and turns to be able to really look at him. “For a while there, I almost regretted upending your life like that.”

“Don't. Don't ever regret it. The bad stuff was always going to come out someday, and I'm incredibly grateful that I had you and Michael when that happened. I'm just sorry I made you both suffer.”

Isobel took a second to appreciate the progress there, because even three months ago Alex would have said something along the line of “I don't deserve you” and “You would have been better off without me”. “We love you, Alex. This suffering is part of life, and honestly we've put you though the wringer too. But you're worth every second of it.”

Alex choked on his breath a little and hugged her again, tightly.

“Where's Michael?” Isobel asked after they'd sitting in a comfortable silence for a while.

“He went for a walk. Should be back any minute.” Alex made a move with his hand to check on his soul's location. Their velcroed souls usually hanged somewhere between them when they moved away from each other, invisible to most people on this planet and intangible unless you knew what you were looking for. “Yes, he's just out the door.”

On cue, Michael walked in, his sun-kissed face lighting up at the sight of them. “Can I join in on the hug?” he asked with a wide smile.

Alex pressed himself closer to Isobel to make space for him on his other side. Michael wrapped his arms around both of them.

“What has you two so happy?” Isobel asked. Her own joy over her healed soul was still there, but she could feel their happiness bleed out into her mindspace.

“Nothing special,” Alex said. “We've been talking about the future.”

“Thinking about traveling,” Michael added. “Maybe different places on Earth first, and then spend some time back on Antar. I don't really have any anchor there since you and Max are here, but Alex has barely seen any of it in the six months we were there.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Isobel smiled. She was relieved that they weren't thinking about moving back to Antar completely, as it would put her in front of a tough choice.

“We wouldn't be gone long, just a few weeks at a time. We can both work remotely, but we could also use an actual vacation.”

“I'll miss you, but you do,” Isobel said. “Do you want me to plan a trip around the world for you? I could do that.” She laughed and feigned offense at the twin horrified expression on Michael and Alex's faces. “I'm joking. This is your vacation, you get to go wherever you want.”

“Oof,” Michael breathed.

“I'm sure you'd plan something beautiful,” Alex said. “But I'm the one who's from here, and I have a few ideas already.”

“Awesome,” Isobel smiled, rising from the couch. “Start planning, I'll go make us some lunch.”

She expected Alex to go get his laptop immediately, but he sat back instead, and she heard him pull Michael into a kiss as soon as she turned her back on them. From the corner of her eyes, she watched them through the open door of the kitchen, cuddling together. She smiled even wider when she noticed something.

The twin cactus souls, squished between t heir bodies , were growing tiny flowers between their spikes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading this story! It was silly and not something I put much thought in, and in some ways it was freeing to not be as self-conscious and careful as I usually am with my writing. It was fun. Huge thanks to everyone who left comments and kudos!

**Author's Note:**

> Comments make my day. I'm also on [tumblr](https://emma-arthur.tumblr.com/) if you want to chat!


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